Face Down
by Liona Vamp
Summary: Bella is in an abusive relationship with Edward. Inspired by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus' song 'Face Down'. AU. Bella/Alice. Short story. Complete.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hello, this is my first one-shot? you could say. Anyways, this one-shot will have several chapters, not many though. This was inspired by the song Face Down by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. This will be a Bella/Alice story so if you don't like this pairing please refrain from reading any of it.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters, Stephenie Meyer does though. And I don't own any of the lyrics as well. **

_**Hey girl, you know you drive me crazy  
one look puts the rhythm in my hand.  
Still I'll never understand why you hang around  
I see what's going down.**_

_**Cover up with make-up in the mirror**_  
_**tell yourself, it's never gonna happen again**_  
_**you cry alone and then he swears he loves you.**_

_**Do you feel like a man when you push her around?**_  
_**Do you feel better now as she falls to the ground?**_  
_**Well I'll tell you my friend, one day this world's going to end**_  
_**as your lies crumble down, a new life she has found.**_

_**Face Down – The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus**_

**Chapter 1**

Bella looked at herself in the mirror. The bruises were already fading from her right cheek to a sickened yellow color. But they were still there, taunting her.

Sighing, she grabbed her make-up bag and applied powder to conceal the bruises. She couldn't risk the possibility of Charlie finding out. Everything would go to hell if he did.

Double checking that the make-up hid the bruises well, she grabbed her back pack from the floor and headed downstairs. Tripping lightly on the last step, she steadied herself upright with the help of the banister.

She headed towards the kitchen and grabbed a package of Pop tarts to eat quickly before leaving to school. She knew that she wouldn't be able to eat on the way. Her boyfriend didn't allow her to eat inside the car. Apparently he didn't want her to 'dirty' his precious car.

While she munched on her pop tarts, she heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Charlie appeared a few seconds later on the entrance to the kitchen. He was already in his uniform, ready to leave for work.

"Morning, Bells." He mumbled.

"Morning, Dad."

It was quiet. Charlie grabbed his mug and made himself coffee.

"Came pretty late yesterday," he more or less stated as he sat down on a chair. She did the same.

Bella sighed quietly. She knew this would happen. She hadn't wanted to come so late yesterday but Edward hadn't let her leave when she asked to be taken home. Instead they continued making out in his car. She went along with him, not wanting to anger him more than he already was. The bruises explained why.

"I know dad and I'm sorry. I promise it won't happen again."

He grunted.

Finishing her pop tarts, she got up to throw away the wrapper in the trash. Charlie followed too, setting the half filled mug in the sink.

"Well, see you later, Bells." Charlie said, adjusting his belt.

"Bye Dad, be careful."

"Always am."

She heard her father head out the door and start the cruiser. After a few moments she heard the cruiser leave.

Taking a deep breathe, she walked to the living room and sat down on the couch. She didn't sit for long though, as she heard a car beep outside her house.

Bella got up quickly and rushed outside. The Volvo was parked on her driveway. Bending her head, she jogged towards the car door and climbed inside quickly, glad that she didn't trip, to prevent from getting wet with the light drizzle. She was greeted with an aggressive kiss from her boyfriend, Edward. His hands touched her cheeks and she backed away quickly. The pain was still there.

Edward's green eyes darkened with rage for a second but then he quickly smoothed his features and smiled his famous crook smile.

"I'm sorry love, you know I didn't mean to," he said as he caressed her cheek lightly. "You know it was your fault for wanting to leave me so quickly."

She sighed. It was always her fault apparently. Either because she didn't do what he told her or because apparently she didn't show him enough that she loved him.

Not wanting to argue, she nodded, indicating that she knew that it was her fault.

She was getting tired of it. It had not always been like this. At the beginning of their relationship, Edward had been the sweetest guy ever. He would take her out on dates; bring her flowers and other presents. But after some time, Edward began getting more aggressive with her. He wouldn't let her hang out with any of her friends, especially not her guy friends, and whenever she would do something he didn't like he would push her around or smack her.

It always ended up with him apologizing over and over that he didn't meant to and that it was, somewhat, her fault. She always forgave him in hopes of him ever changing in the future. That day hadn't arrived yet and she was starting to think that it never would.

She was brought out of her thoughts by Edward's rough lips as he began to kiss her again.

After a few moments they separated, as the need for air had become too much. Edward smirked as he watched Bella breathed heavily.

"Such a feisty girl you are, love." Bella just smiled, which came out more of a grimace.

Edward reversed out of the driveway and drove to school. Along the way, Edward grabbed Bella's hand possessively in his own. Entering the crowded school's parking lot, he parked smoothly in his usual parking spot.

They both got out and met at the end of the car. Edward placed his arm around Bella's shoulders and they leaned on his car as they waited for the bell to ring. Bella looked around the parking lot and noticed an expensive-looking canary yellow car parked two cars away.

'_There must be new students,' _Bella thought.

The only really nice cars owned around here was by Edward's family. The famous Cullen family, as everybody said. Jasper and Rosalie were twins and Edward's siblings. They both were seniors this year. Edward, one year younger than them, was a junior. Not knowing them personally, you would think that they weren't related at all but looking closely, similarities could be noticed. They were easily the most beautiful people at school.

Out of the three, Jasper was the most calm and quiet, quite opposite from his twin sister, who was a complete bitch and was often referred as the 'ice queen'. Edward was a tad bit worse, because of his temper and all.

Coming out of her thoughts, she noticed a petite girl leaning against the canary yellow car. Her hair was in a pixie-like style, making her look like a fairy, and she was no more than 5 feet tall. She was wearing designer clothes that literally screamed 'Shopaholic'! But that's not what caught her attention; her eyes were drawn to the girl's face. Her face was flawless, with high cheekbones, rosy lips, small nose, and bright blue eyes. She was perfect and she looked just like an angel. No, she looked like a goddess.

"_A goddess?" _Bella questioned herself quietly. Where did that come from?

Apparently she wasn't that quiet because Edward gave her a questioning look. She ignored him and continued to look at the girl. By that time, a big muscular guy had joined her side.

The guy was easily over 6 feet tall with short curly hair and had the same blue eyes as the girls' except his didn't shine like hers. The big guy wore a big goofy smile on his face as he talked to the girl, who perhaps was his sister?

"Who are you looking at?" Edward asked with a dangerous edge in his voice.

Bella quickly looked away from the couple and turned to Edward.

"Nobody. I think we have new students though." She said quietly, gesturing to the two unknown people near the expensive car.

Edward moved his gaze sharply to their direction. He narrowed his eyes as he studied them. After a moment he tore away his gaze from them and looked at Bella.

"Why are you looking at them?" he asked as his eyes darkened lightly.

"I was just curious." Bella responded even more quietly than before as she shrunken back a bit.

She didn't want another angry episode from him like many other times. The guys at school now tended to avoid her gaze after Edward beat up Mike Newton, one of her fellow friends, because he had apparently looked at her for 'too long'.

Edward grunted as he possessively snaked his arms around her waist and hold her tightly against his chest.

Just then the bell rang and they both began to walk towards their class, with his arms still tightly around her waist.

As they were about to enter into the building, Bella caught the gaze of the small pixie-like girl. In spite of herself, she smiled lightly at her as she gave her a bright smile, with teeth showing and all.

**A/N: Ok, that was chapter 1, bit short I know but it's a start, I guess. Please review and let me know if I should continue this or not. Yay or Nay?**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Bella's head was throbbing as she made her way to the cafeteria. Her morning classes hadn't gone too well as Edward was also in there too, in all her classes actually. That was the consequences of having a beautiful and popular boyfriend who could manipulate the school faculty to his choice.

Edward had been a bit more possessive during classes today and that bothered her to no end. But she hadn't said anything to him, preferring to keep peace between them. Thankfully though, Edward had left to do some 'business' and left her alone to walk to the cafeteria. She cherished those few moments were Edward was not around.

As she walked she began to question her relationship with Edward once again. She had become more and more tired of Edward and his aggressive behavior and thought of breaking up with him but knew that it would not end lightly, as always. Knowing Edward and her previous weak attempts to break up with him, she knew for sure that Edward would make a scene and most probably hit her.

She didn't know why he couldn't let her go though. She was plain with no extraordinary features that could help her case. She was sure that Edward could easily find a prettier girl than her. But he was stubborn, saying that she was meant for him and that they'd be together forever. To be honest, that scared her a bit. Every time he would say that, she would get this feeling that he was being truthful. He would never let her go.

The sudden chatter of students talking brought her out of her reverie. She walked directly to the line formed to her right to get her food. As she waited in line, she then detected a delicious scent. It smelled like chocolate scented with a bit of strawberries. She turned around, to look for the appetizing scent, and came face to face with the new girl.

Up close she looked even more beautiful. Her eyes were brighter and a lovely blush could be noticed on her cheeks. Not knowing what to do, she stood there gaping at her.

The girl giggled lightly at her reaction and extended her hand.

"Hi, I'm Mary Alice Brandon but you can call me Alice."

Bella blinked and extended her hand to meet hers. At the contact, a current of electricity flowed throughout her arm. She shivered. "Um hey, I'm Isabella Marie Swan but you can call me Bella."

Alice giggled again. "So Bella, how long have you lived here?"

"My whole life," Bella said, blushing a bit. She noticed the line moving so she moved to keep up. Alice followed. As they collected their food, Alice kept up the chatter.

"How old are you?'

"I'm 17 and you?'

"Me too," Alice responded excitedly. Bella smiled at her energy.

"So, would you mind if my brother and I sat with you?"

Bella pursued her lips. She didn't know if she should. She knew that Edward would instantly get jealous if he saw her sitting with anybody else but him. Everything would go downhill, especially since Alice's brother would sit with them too.

'_But he's not here_,' the voice in Bella's head said.

Alice's smile faltered as Bella took her time to respond. Noticing this, Bella felt guilty for making Alice sad. She barely met her but she just knew that Alice was a good person and it sadden her that she hurt her.

"Not at all," Bella finally decided.

"Are you sure?" Alice asked hesitantly.

Bella smiled. "Positive."

With that, they both headed to a table at the very far corner of the cafeteria. This action was not unnoticed. Students gawked at them and whispered to each other quietly as they passed. They all knew that Bella sat only with Edward and only him. Bella and Alice ignored their whisperings and sat down.

At first, they both ate quietly for a moment, but that was disturbed by a loud voice.

"Sis! Who do we have here?" The big muscular guy asked as he sat down on the other side of Bella with a big smile and a plate full of food. This caused heads to turn their way.

"Keep it down, Emmett!" Emmett just raised his hands up in surrender and began stuffing his mouth with food.

"Thank you. This is Bella. Bella, this is my idiot of a brother, Emmett."

Bella giggled quietly at the introduction.

Emmett laughed at her reaction, choking slightly, and rose up his hand.

"High five, Bells!"

Slowly, Bella rose up her hand and touched her palm with his. Emmett grinned.

"So Bells, watcha doing in this fine afternoon?" Bella smiled and shrugged.

"Not much."

Emmett rolled his eyes. "I can see, there's not much to do around here."

Bella nodded as she ate a bit of food. "So, where do you guys come from?"

"We lived in LA before, our dad owns a company there. Mom owned a gallery but she sold it. She lost her inspiration, she says." Alice shook her head sadly. "But anyways, Emmett and I were tired of the big city so we asked dad if we could move, said yes straight away after I did my pout."

Alice grinned triumphantly as if she accomplished something impossible. Bella chuckled.

"Must be a very magical pout if he said yes," Bella said, humor evident in her voice.

"Oh yes-"

Alice was suddenly interrupted by a cold voice.

"What are you doing, Isabella?" The voice spat out angrily. Bella froze, terrified. Slowly she turned her head to face him and was greeted by a very angry Edward. His arms were by his sides, hands clenched into fist, and his veins were visible with the force he was adding. His eyes were pitch black, rage swimming in them, and his mouth was set in a hard line.

"_I – uh..uh_" Bella stuttered. She didn't know what to say.

"It's cool man, she's just eating with us," Emmett explained easily.

'_Oh no,_' Bella thought.

"Isabella, get up now before I make you get up myself," Edward said, through clenched teeth, as he ignored what Emmett had said. Hastily, Bella got up from her chair to stand besides Edward.

She turned to Alice and Emmett. "I'm sorry but I have to leave."

Alice's expression was one of angry and sadness. She didn't know why Bella let that jerk talk to her like that. She deserved better, way better, but she didn't say anything, afraid that the jerk might do something to Bella because of it. She saw Emmett clench his hands into fist but quickly unclenched them when she hit him hard on his shin under the table with her foot. Emmett groaned quietly.

Alice met Bella's terrified gaze and she knew she had to help her. She didn't know why Bella was so terrified of him but she would find out some way. Bella squeaked out a small 'Sorry' before she was dragged off by Edward, who was grabbing her arm tightly, towards the cafeteria's exit. Edward and Bella were soon out of their sight. Alice longed to go after them and confront this guy who dared to take her away from them but refrained from doing so.

"Why the hell didn't you let me do anything to that bastard?" Emmett asked angrily.

"It would've made things worse Emmet. He was seriously angry and he could have done anything stupid."

"So? You know I could take him," Emmett flexed his muscular arms.

Alice scoffed at him. "It's not all about muscles Emmett; besides you don't want to get in trouble on your first day of school, do you?"

Just then the bell rang and Alice got up without waiting for Emmett's reply. She then headed to her next class, Biology.

The rest of the school day passed smoothly but Alice didn't see Bella again and that worried her. Maybe she should have not let her leave with him. What if he did seriously do hurt her? After all, the guy did seem kind of off to her. He was too controlled by rage that anything could happen in his presence.

Far away, Bella screamed loudly in pain.

**A/N: Please Review :) Them reviews inspire meee.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters, Stephenie Meyer does though. I merely use them for my own convenience. I don't own any of the lyrics as well. Ahh, such a waste. **

_**Hey girl, you know you drive me crazy  
one look puts the rhythm in my hand.  
Still I'll never understand why you hang around  
I see what's going down.**_

**_Cover up with make-up in the mirror_**  
**_tell yourself, it's never gonna happen again_**  
**_you cry alone and then he swears he loves you._**

**_Do you feel like a man when you push her around?_**  
**_Do you feel better now as she falls to the ground?_**  
**_Well I'll tell you my friend, one day this world's going to end_**  
**_as your lies crumble down, a new life she has found._**

_**Face Down – The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus**_

**Chapter 3**

Bella was still as a rock. She didn't dare move a muscle until she was sure he had left. She listened intently but the only sound she could hear was her own shallow breathing. Slowly, she exhaled and tried to get up from the damp floor of the meadow. She clenched her teeth as she felt an immense pain on her left side. Breathing deeply in and out, she supported herself with the tree near by and rose carefully. She looked up at the sky and noticed it was twilight already. The ending of another day but hopefully the ending of her hell too. Slowly but surely, she began to walk towards the opposite direction that Edward had gone. She had to get as far away as she could before he could find out that she wasn't there anymore.

It had gone too far this time. She knew that she had to do something about the situation with Edward soon or she would never get out of the hell hole she was in now. She had to tell someone or she would explode with all those raging emotions she had swirling inside herself now, waiting to finally get an exit. Bella remembered the murderous look on Edward's face and shuddered. He had been too far into his rage to listen to her.

She had tried to get him to understand that she was just trying to be nice. He didn't believe her, saying that she only did it because she wanted to fuck the new guy. Bella had been surprised at this, how could he believe that from her? She wasn't that kind of girl and he knew it but he didn't seem to reason at that moment. Instead he had dragged her into the forest and took her to what once was their beautiful meadow. Now, it was marred with the violent scenes that occurred there.

Edward had thrown her to the ground and held her there without any escape.

"You'll always be mine, you hear me? I will not let you go whore around with those other fuckers at school." Edward had spat out angrily.

Bella had been too terrified at that time that she didn't say anything. She tried to cover her face with her hands but Edward roughly took them in his hands and gripped them in a tight hold by her sides. She began crying quietly, feeling tears roll down her cheeks falling to each side and disappearing from view.

"Don't you dare cry, you know this is your entire fault. If you loved me enough you wouldn't be doing what you did. Now, I'm just going to teach you a fucking lesson and show you what will happen next time you pull an act like that again. And believe me, next time it'll be worse"

And thus, he began to torture her. He had kicked and punched at every part of her except her face. Bella had screamed in pain but quickly learned that it was useless so she stopped. Instead she cried until she had no more tears. Right when she thought she was sure going to die, Edward slowly had stopped his actions.

He was breathing heavily through his mouth but after a while it slowed down. Bella had stilled, afraid of what he would do next. Slowly, Edward moved on top of her broken form and stared into her eyes. She swallowed soundlessly as she met his gaze.

His eyes didn't hold that rage anymore; instead he wore that blank look. He began to caress her hair softly. Bella could only stare at him, speechless at his actions.

"I'm sorry love but you know it had to be done. There was no other way for you to learn that you hurt me by what you did. How could you leave me to go with them? You know we always sit together at lunch and just because I left for a moment didn't mean I was not returning. Do you know how hurt I was to see you sitting with that idiot and that bitch?"

Bella found strength to speak. "Don't call her that!" Bella said with the angriest tone she could provide. How dare he call her that? He didn't have any right to do so! Bella realized too late that she shouldn't have done that. Edward's face immediately turned to one of furious again.

"What'd you say? I'll call her whatever the fuck I want. It's her fucking fault that we are fighting, hers and that bastard. If they hadn't moved here, you wouldn't have had the need to be 'nice' and fucking sit with them. So do not fucking tell me not to call her anything, that bitch deserves that and more."

Edward now had Bella's hair in a hard grip. Bella whimpered slightly but didn't say anything. She didn't dare make any other comment. Suddenly Edward kissed Bella roughly, surprising her completely.

Bella didn't dare to say anything; instead she just let him have his way with her and her lips. After a while Edward removed his lips from hers and continued kissing her on her neck. He sucked hard on her neck, leaving red angry marks behind. Bella groaned quietly but did nothing else.

Edward moved lower to kiss the skin on top of her breasts, leaving small red marks there too. He roughly took Bella's breast on his hands and squeezed them.

"You feel so good love." Edward said huskily.

Bella panicked. She didn't want to have sex, if you could call it that way, here in the forest where he had just finish beating her up. In fact, she didn't want to do anything at all with him, period. Slowly, Bella placed her hand on Edward's chest and pushed back a little. Edward apparently didn't take the hint because he continued to assault her neck and breasts. Bella pushed with more force.

Edward stopped his actions and turned to look at Bella with an angry and questioning look. Bella gulped loudly as she finally had his attention.

"Please, not here." She gasped out.

Edward's eyebrows crunched up in confusion. "Don't you want me?"

"I do but not right here, I'm a bit….sore." She said, choosing her words carefully. But that was a huge understatement. She felt pain everywhere and she knew that bruises would now be forming on all over her body at the moment.

"Oh yes, of course love. I'm sure you're a bit sore at the moment. But remember, I only did it because I love you so much and I care for you a lot. I just wanted you to reflect on what you did today and for you to understand that it was wrong of you to do so. You should have asked me first, love."

She didn't say anything, instead she just nodded. She had begun to see that Edward was sick. How can he think that by beating her up would solve anything? He was just being a jealous and asshole boyfriend that didn't stand not to have things go his way. God, all those times that she would forgive him, it had only spur him to keep doing it. She would lie to everyone about where she got her bruises whenever Edward would leave a bruise in a place where it was visible. It was like she had given him the ok to keep abusing her all he wanted. She hoped it wasn't too late to try and redeemed this situation.

"Come on let's go love." Edward had said, interrupting her thoughts. He reached for her hand.

"No!" Bella had practically screamed. "I uhh, I want to stay here for a moment…..alone." She whispered the last part.

Edward's eyes hardened. "Why?" He demanded.

"I want to….think about what I did today. I'm starting to see it was my fault after all." She lied. She could only hope that Edward didn't catch her lie. She'd never been good at lying after all.

Edward smiled. "You see, love? I knew you would come to reason. Ok then, I'll leave you for a moment. I won't go far though; I don't want anything to happen to you."

Bella had scoffed in her head. He had already done enough damage himself but nonetheless, she was glad that he had believed her.

Edward had risen steadily and left. And that's how now she found herself like this. Running away from him in the forest, not knowing where she was going.

She was now walking more deep into the forest but she didn't care, she only wanted to get away from Edward. Bella looked around her surroundings. It was getting darker and soon it would be pitch black. Trying to keep the panic at bay Bella decided to continue with her journey.

She clutched at her side as she walked. She had become numb with pain and her head had begun throbbing again. Bella moaned in pain but continued walking.

After what seemed forever, Bella finally heard something more than the constant chirping of birds. At first it sounded like a distant chatter but as she got nearer she realized that it was a river. Bella approached the edge of the river and sank to her knees slowly. She dipped her hands into the water and then brought them to her sweaty face. After doing that for a few time to cool off, she stared at her location.

Pursuing her lips, she decided to walk east. She rose slowly and began walking again.

She walked for about twenty minutes, it seemed, but soon she began to tire again. Her breathing was erratic and she was sweating heavily. Bella cleaned off the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand. Her steps were becoming more tired and weak but she didn't dare to give up. She didn't want the possibility of Edward finding her. She walked for a few more minutes but soon her panic began to creep up again. What if she never found her way out? What if an animal attacked her? Bella tried to suppress her panicked thoughts by humming a tune.

As she pushed through some bushes, Bella walked into a dirt road. Confused, Bella looked to her right and up ahead she could make out a light. Eagerly, Bella walked a bit faster but still carefully as she still felt pain. As she got closer, Bella soon realized it was a house she was heading to. The house was a white two story house and a garage was next to it. She then a noticed a familiar canary yellow car and her curiosity spiked up.

"_Could this be Alice's house_," Bella thought.

Bella hesitated but finally decided to approach the house, she was in too much pain to not try and get help. Just as she was about to reach the porch, the front door opened and a small figure came out. A light then came on and the surprised face of Alice Brandon came into her view.

Alice gasped in horror as she noticed a hunched Bella in front of her. Bella stilled as Alice gaped at her in surprise. She didn't know if she should move or not.

Alice came alive again and hurried to Bella's side.

"Oh my god, are you ok, Bella? What happened to you? How'd you get here?" Alice bombarded with questions. Bella brought her hand up to silence her.

Alice closed her mouth but placed her arm around Bella's waist to help her. As Alice tugged at her waist, Bella cried out in pain and fell to the floor. Alice squeaked in panic and quickly tried to assist Bella.

Pain now seemed to become alive in Bella's body. It licked up all over body. Bella began to hyperventilate with the amount of pain she was enduring. Black spots began to cover her vision. The last thing she saw was Alice's panicked face before she passed out.

**A/N: Ok, there you have it. Next chapter will be the last one, hopefully. Please review guys. I really want to know what you guys think. Does it suck or not? Ya'll don't have to write a whole paragraph, it could be a simple 'It sucks' or 'Nice' or whatever, just give me something here guys. Well, now that I have begged, I shall now withdrawal. Until next time..!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters, Stephenie Meyer does though. I merely use them for my own convenience. I don't own any of the lyrics as well. Ahh, such a waste. **

**A/N: This is not the final chapter. I decided to give you guys this update than making you wait more time than necessary. Next chapter though, will be the last. Also, sorry for any typos.**

_**Hey girl, you know you drive me crazy  
one look puts the rhythm in my hand.  
Still I'll never understand why you hang around  
I see what's going down.**_

_**Cover up with make-up in the mirror**_  
_**tell yourself, it's never gonna happen again**_  
_**you cry alone and then he swears he loves you.**_

_**Do you feel like a man when you push her around?**_  
_**Do you feel better now as she falls to the ground?**_  
_**Well I'll tell you my friend, one day this world's going to end**_  
_**as your lies crumble down, a new life she has found.**_

_**Face Down – The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus**_

**Chapter 4**

Bella's breathing was short, staccato like, as she walked through the forest. She tried her best, but she still couldn't reach that light, sparkling far away. It seemed to call her, tantalize her with its bright edges. Bella ran again and ended up tripping, a loose root taking the blame. Bella clenched her fist and pounded the damp ground with such fury. She wanted to reach the light, she just didn't know how to. She screamed out loud in frustration as she got up and stood there for a moment. She was getting annoyed. The silence surrounding her was heavy. Not a single noise could be heard except for her own breathing. Silence could be heard. Surprisingly, her thoughts were too. As she observed the distant light, its form seemed to move towards her, floating on the air creep-like, getting bigger and bigger. Without a warning, the bright light surrounded her, lifting her up into the clear sky.

At that moment, Bella felt as if a heavy weight was lifted off of her. It wasn't silent anymore, that was now shattered. A constant peeping was going on to her right and she could see a bright light hitting her closed eyelids, illuminating the inside of them. She moved her hand and felt soft material covering her body.

Taking a deep breath, she opened her eyes carefully and slowly. Light blinded her as she opened them fully. Her right hand immediately took the duty to protect her eyes from the bright light.

She heard footsteps and the light disappeared. She removed her hand from her eyes and tried to adjust them to the new view.

The first thing she noticed was the white walls. Everything around her was white. A big window was to her left where she could see the dark sky with its shiny stars. They looked so far away, out of her reach. Movement to her right caught her attention.

Charlie was there, sitting on a chair near her bed in his police uniform. His eyes were slightly red and puffy as if he had been crying. He quickly wiped his eyes and cleared his throat uncomfortably.

"How are you, Bells?" He whispered, his voice sounding shaky.

Gulping hard, she managed to say, "I'm fine, Cha- Dad." It wasn't entirely true though. Her whole body was aching and every time she took in a breath, her throat felt like it was on fire. But at least she didn't feel that unbearable pain like she had before. She could handle it.

He nodded but looked at her closely. Bella stayed quiet. She felt relieved that she was safe now but she didn't know how things would go now that Charlie was here. He would flip out if he knew what had happened.

"What happened, Bells? Did someone do this to you? And how did you end up in the Brandon's house?" Charlie asked after a moment, his voice sounding desperate.

_Shit!_ Bella thought. She had forgotten all about Alice. Where was she? Was she the one to bring her to the hospital?

"Bells," Charlie interrupted her thoughts.

Bella shifted uncomfortably. She didn't know how to respond. Could she tell him the truth?

"How long have I been here?" Bella asked, ignoring his question.

Charlie looked at her warily. "A few days, you were literally knocked out, Bells. I-"

A knock interrupted their moment and she was grateful for whoever was on the other side. She didn't know how to deal with Charlie at the moment.

"Come in," called out Charlie.

The door opened and much to Bella's surprise, Carlisle stepped inside. '_Oh My God, was he the one that treated me?'_ Bella's thoughts went erratic the moment Carlisle stepped inside. She'd known that Carlisle was a doctor but she hadn't thought of him being the doctor that treated her. How ironic it all was. His son was the one to create her injuries and he, the father, treated them. Bella didn't even attempt to laugh at the irony; she was too confused at the moment.

Carlisle coughed. "I'm sorry to interrupt. I just came in to check on Bella. I can see that she's now fully awake."

Charlie scrambled to stand up. "Of course Carlisle, go ahead. I'll just uh…wait outside." He turned to Bella. "I'll be right outside Bells."

Bella could only nod. Charlie walked out the door and closed the door quietly.

Bella turned her attention to the doctor. Carlisle approached the side of her bed quietly and stared at Bella for a moment. Bella shifted uncomfortably under his gaze.

"I know what happened." Carlisle said quietly as he directed his gaze anywhere but Bella.

Bella gasped in shock. How did he know? Did Edward tell him? Was Edward here in the hospital?

"Know what?" Bella asked, playing dumb.

"Don't Bella. I know Edward did this to you. It wasn't hard to guess after how he acted at home when he arrived. He was a mess, murmuring things about how he went too far and how he didn't know where you were. I'm so sorry Bella for what he did to you. If I had known, I would have put a stop to it."

Bella interrupted before he could continue, "It's not your fault Carlisle. You didn't know what was going on and besides, it's more my fault after all. If I had told someone about it then all of this wouldn't have gotten this far." Bella looked down at her lap in shame.

Carlisle lifted her face up by her chin and looked at her fiercely. "This is not your fault, Isabella. You were scared and didn't know what to do. Edward is my son and I love him very much but you are also a daughter to me. I won't allow him to harm you anymore. I will take care of everything. You won't have to worry about him anymore."

Bella felt tears spring to her eyes. She never knew that Carlisle looked at her as if she was his own daughter. She wiped away her tears before they could fall down her cheeks.

Bella cleared her throat. "Where's Edward?"

Carlisle hesitated. "At home, he doesn't know I know, though. It was better if he didn't know, if not, he would have tried to escape." He sighed. "I was waiting for you to regain consciousness so that I could ask you if," he paused "if you would give your statement to the police of what happened. Edward needs to deal with the consequences of his actions."

Bella stayed quiet. She didn't know how to respond to that. It must've been painful for Carlisle to decide to turn in Edward to the authorities.

"I don't -," she gulped, "O-ok, I will." She decided. It was time to deal with this. She couldn't keep acting like a coward and let Edward continue bringing her down. She just hoped it would all turn for the better but she still couldn't help feeling guilty. She had made Carlisle choose between her and his son.

"I'm sorry." Bella whispered, looking down at her lap. She didn't know if that would be enough.

"Don't be Bella. We're doing the right thing here." Carlisle reassured her, as he patted her arm gently.

He straightened. "Now, I believe someone is eager to see you. She's been waiting here since you were brought in." Carlisle smiled a little at this.

Bella's curiosity peaked, "Who?"

"Her name's Alice Brandon, if I'm correct. She's been worried about you and nearly damned killed Edward when she took site of him. I'm guessing she too realized that Edward was the cause of your injuries," Carlisle chuckled a bit. "She's very strong despite her small frame."

Bella was shocked at this. _Alice was here? Why would she, they barely knew each other?_

"Would you like for her to come in?" Carlisle questioned, distracting Bella from her musings.

Bella nodded. "Wait! What about Charlie?"

"Don't worry. I'll tell him you need some time to yourself. And Bella, don't worry about Edward anymore." He patted her arm. Carlisle made his way towards the door and smiled at Bella before exiting.

Bella sighed and intertwined her fingers nervously, while looking out the window. It was still dark outside and it drove Bella back to her memories in the woods. Before she could delve much into them, the door opened. And there she was in all her glory, beautiful as ever. Alice.

She stepped in quickly and rushed to Bella's side.

"Oh Bella, how are you feeling? Are you ok? I'm so sorry Bella. If I had known something like this was going to happen I would hav-."

"Alice!" Bella interrupted. Alice paused to look at her.

Bella took Alice's hand in hers."Don't blame yourself. It's not your fault." Alice made a move to talk but Bella gave her a pointed look. "No Alice. Stop taking the blame. If anything else, I'm the one to take the blame. And don't tell me otherwise." Bella added when Alice was about to contradict that last statement.

Alice smiled at her sadly.

"Alice, how did you know that…Edward did this?" Bella asked curiously.

Alice sighed quietly and slowly caressed Bella's hand. "Well, it really wasn't hard to guess. After how he got pissed and dragged you out the cafeteria, I knew something was wrong with him. And god, you looked so scared when you saw him, it was clear that he intimidated you. I only put the rest of the pieces together after you passed out and saw your injuries." Alice clenched her hand that wasn't holding Bella's. "I knew he had done it, for whatever purpose. It was only logical." She sighed. "When you passed out, I called Emmett to help me. We brought you here."

Bella moved her hand on top of Alice's. "Thank you, Alice. I know you didn't have to do that but you did, so thank you."

"Of course I had to help you!" She exclaimed. "You're my friend and friends help each other no matter what." She hugged Bella gently.

Bella felt her heart swell as she hugged her back. They barely knew each other but the girl had already done a lot for her. She couldn't be more grateful.

"Thank you." Bella said again as they pulled back.

"No need Bella," was all that Alice said.

For the next few hours Bella and Alice talked, only stopping when a nurse would enter and check how Bella was doing. During that time, as Bella got to know more about the small pixie, she couldn't help but like her even more. She had this aura that pulled her in. And only when the sun glared through the window, a rare thing in Forks, Bella made Alice go home to take a shower and rest. Alice had left reluctantly, promising to come back in a few hours.

Exhausted, Bella went into a deep slumber.

**A/N: So sorry for the late update. A lot has been going on and then my computer got a virus and I can't use it at the moment so I had to upload this at school. I'll try to update faster next time. Please review:)**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I want to give a special Thank You to all of those that have reviewed; I couldn't have made it without ya'll even if I did take long. **

**Reviewers****: sawa255, RJA fan, reasonable excuse, Kati-Mouse9595, Adriya J, lexy lujan, samaramorgane, losergirl, Anon, Kathleen, miros-ale, Jess, Darc-Lucia San, loverofstories4.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters, Stephenie Meyer does though. I merely use them for my own convenience. I don't own any of the lyrics as well. Ahh, such a waste. **

_**Hey girl, you know you drive me crazy  
one look puts the rhythm in my hand.  
Still I'll never understand why you hang around  
I see what's going down.**_

_**Cover up with make-up in the mirror  
tell yourself, it's never gonna happen again  
you cry alone and then he swears he loves you.**_

**_Do you feel like a man when you push her around?_**  
**_Do you feel better now as she falls to the ground?_**  
**_Well I'll tell you my friend, one day this world's going to end_**  
**_as your lies crumble down, a new life she has found._**

_**Face Down – The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus**_

**Chapter 5**

The next few days were about the same. Alice and Charlie would come and visit Bella, each at different times of course, to keep her company. Alice still had to go to school after all and Charlie had to work but Bella was still grateful that they took the time to visit her. She would have been bored out of her mind. It helped though, that she got to know Alice even more. She got to know Emmett too, as he had visited her twice with Alice. During that time, Bella had a permanent blush on her cheeks as Emmett kept going with his inappropriate comments and jokes.

On the fifth day though, Carlisle stopped in the morning by Bella's room and told her she was free to leave by the afternoon. She'd been healing well; only yellowish bruises were still visible and her bruised ribs didn't hurt as much as before.

After a small talk, Carlisle had told Bella quietly that he'd already made the report to the authorities. They would be contacting her in the next few days to give her statement. With a trembling voice, Bella had asked if Charlie was taking charge of the case. That would explain why Charlie would sometimes be deep in thought and studying her closely when he'd visit her. Carlisle confirmed her suspicions and explained that the only reason why Charlie hadn't confronted her already was because he had asked him not to, as to not overwhelm her. Charlie had agreed for the time being but said that he would do everything possible to punish Edward for his cowardly actions.

Bella had cried silently. She didn't know why but it somehow felt right for some reason. It helped her deal with all the stuff going on at the moment. Carlisle left her then, with a tender kiss to her forehead and pleas for her not to worry about Edward anymore. She'd agreed half-heartedly.

She was ready to leave as soon as possible though. It was already three thirty in the afternoon and it wouldn't be long before Charlie arrived to take her home. Bella sat on the bed, having already changed into a blouse and sweat pants, and chewed nervously on her nails.

At that moment the door opened, revealing a male nurse pushing a wheelchair and Charlie right behind him. Charlie walked past the nurse and stood in front of Bella, holding his hand out. Sighing, Bella took Charlie's hand and let him guide her to sit on the wheelchair near the door.

She slowly sat down on the wheelchair and gingerly adjusted her feet on the foot plates at the bottom. With hopes of her getting better, the nurse left the room. Charlie looked at Bella and smiled sadly at her.

"Well Bells, the paperwork was already taken care of an-"

Charlie was interrupted by a shout. Bella turned to look behind her where a figure quickly appeared by the door.

"Wait! I'm here, I'm here," said a slightly flustered Alice as she walked into the room, "Sorry I'm late! I had to stay afterschool for some stuff and then I lost track of time and I had to practically race over here," she looked at Charlie, "but not that I went over the speed limit or anything, I was right on the limit but hey that doesn't matter now does it? Yeah, it doesn't matter because I'm here already, right?" She looked innocently at Bella.

Bella stared at Alice for a second before she started outright laughing at her ramblings. A few moments later Charlie joined too, leaving a confused Alice standing there. A few minutes passed when Bella and Charlie's chuckles finally died down.

"What was that for," asked Alice, with a hand on her hip.

Bella grinned at Alice, "Nothing, but what are you doing here? I thought you weren't coming since, you know, I get out today."

"Why wouldn't I come, Bella? I'll always be there for you, that's what best friends are for!" She clapped her hands excitedly.

Bella shook her head in amusement but at the same time she couldn't help but feel a streak of sadness when she mentioned they were best friends. She didn't know why but being only best friends didn't satisfy her. She ignored that feeling though, for she had no idea what it meant at all.

* * *

"Tell me already," said an exasperated Bella.

The pixie-like girl standing in front of her smirked and shook her head in a negative. Bella groaned and stepped back. She was all but ready to kill her. Not literally of course, she didn't have many friends to start with, so she couldn't really lose one at the moment but hypothetically, yes she would. She was used to Alice's behavior though; after all she'd spent most of her time with her after that haunting event a few months before.

It'd been five months to be exact since the 'incident' and her life was back to its normal boring state. Now though, she and Alice were inseparable and she wouldn't have wanted it any other way. She'd become great friends with Emmett too but that really wasn't surprising, the guy was the most likeable person she's ever known so it was impossible not to become friends with him. She didn't know what she would've done without them two if they had not been with her that first day at school after her stay in the hospital. The whispers and rumors about her being the reason that their 'precious and popular' Edward was in jail had been too much to take that she had almost resigned herself to never return to school. Alice hadn't let her though, saying that everything would get better and that she would always be with her. Emmett, being the typical 'macho' guy, had promised to kick anybody's ass if they dared to say or do anything to her. She'd laugh at that but made sure to tell him that it wouldn't be necessary. It did get better, though. After a while people had gotten over it and moved on to the next piece of gossip which was that Lauren, a not so friends of hers, had gotten knocked up by a college guy from Port Angeles. She didn't know where people got those kinds of rumors from but she was glad that they weren't talking about her situation anymore.

It wasn't like she wanted the constant reminder of Edward. She'd been ready to forget all about that after dealing with the police report and the rest of the process. She'd been glad, though, that Charlie hadn't been the one to ask for her statement that day when a few police officers had arrived with him a couple of days later after getting out of the hospital. Instead he had hovered at a distance while he let Officer Marshall deal with her statement. It'd been a fast process after that and before she knew it, she'd received news that Edward had been sentenced to jail for 3 years for assault and other stuff she hadn't cared to pay attention to. She'd been relieved that Edward wouldn't be getting anywhere near her anytime soon but there was still a small part of her that felt guilty for Edward being in jail. Not so much for him but for his mother, Esme, who had always been so nice to her the few times she'd seen her.

Snapping out of her daydreaming, Bella glared at Alice with her hands on her hips. "You will tell me right at this instant or I won't go at all," she said defiantly.

"But Bella," Alice whined, "it's a surprise! I can't tell you. Please, just trust me on this. Please, for me," she begged, making her famous pout and puppy eyes more pronounced.

Bella tried to look away but it was already too late. Those puppy eyes and pout of hers always got to her. She was a sucker for them as she was for the petite girl in front of her. She could never tell her that though or she would totally use it in her advantage more often.

Bella sighed, "Fine!"

"Yay," Alice squealed.

Bella smiled at her enthusiasm. She could really be a handful sometimes but she loved her nonetheless. Heck, she was _in _love with her, if she were to be honest. It hadn't taken long for her not to adore Alice but somehow along their friendship she had fallen for the small pixie. It wasn't like she was a lesbian or anything; she had actually never considered that thought before, but there was no denying she felt an attraction to her. She'd like to think it was because of Alice in particularly and not woman in particular, after all she'd never been attracted to other woman before. That is until Alice, of course. Not that it mattered really; she knew she'd never have a chance with a goddess like her. She was everything she wasn't; beautiful, charismatic, and truly one of a kind. She was nothing compared to her but that still didn't stop her from being her friend. She knew that as long as she could be around her she would be somehow satisfied.

"Ok then, I'll be here later at 7 to pick you up," stated Alice, oblivious to the brunette's thoughts.

"Alright, alright then," responded Bella.

Alice gave her a big smile, kissed her on the cheek, and left her bedroom with a quick goodbye.

Bella ran a hand through her hair as she sat on her bed.

"She's going to be the death of me," mumbled Bella. Looking up to her clock she noticed it was already 5 in the afternoon. Standing up, she decided it would be better to start getting ready as she still didn't know what she was going to wear to their….date? She didn't really know what it would be classified as. Alice had said she wanted to take her a special place of hers and nothing more, only commenting to dress nice and comfortable. Her hopes of being something more were nothing but illusions.

* * *

Alice took Bella's hand in her own and guided her forward. Coming to a halt, she hesitated for a moment.

"Are your eyes still closed," asked Alice, looking at Bella suspiciously.

"Yes! I had already said so, now hurry up," complained Bella.

"Ok, ok don't get your panties in a twist," muttered Alice.

She quickly took off the piece of cloth covering Bella's eyes and stuffed it away.

"Ok, you can open your eyes now."

Bella slowly opened her eyes and gasped. They were on top of a cliff and in the distance across the horizon; a beautiful sunset with bright orange rays greeted them. Bella was speechless. She'd never seen anything more beautiful. It felt so calm and serene with the cool air and the gentle, soothing sound of the ocean waves.

Bella slowly walked forward to the edge of the cliff, wanting to somehow get closer to the beautiful sunset.

"What do you think," asked Alice quietly, not wanting to disturb the peaceful mood.

Bella turned around to look at Alice and was greeted with an even more beautiful sight. Her.

"It's beautiful, Alice," Bella commented honestly.

Alice smiled shyly and stepped forward. "I'm glad you think so. I've come here a few times to think and get away from everything. I thought it would be great to share it with someone else."

Bella took a few steps to stand in front of Alice. "I'm glad you decided to share it with me. It's absolutely gorgeous," said Bella with a smile.

"Not as gorgeous as you," said Alice quietly, looking into Bella's eyes.

Bella was struck in silence. She thought she was gorgeous? It couldn't be, she was plain while she was easily the most beautiful girl she'd ever seen.

"I don't think so," mumbled Bella.

"You are Bella, so much and don't you ever doubt that," Alice said with so much conviction, as she took her hands in her own.

Bella looked down at their hands.

"Look, there's a reason why I brought you here. I've wanted to tell you for a while but I didn't have the guts to do so," Alice said, "but I think it's time for you to know. I can't keep waiting around without knowing if maybe there's a chance."

Bella looked up into Alice's beautiful blue eyes.

"What is it," Bella asked, her voice cracking slightly at the end.

Alice breathed deeply. "I like you, no, that's an understatement," she shook her head, "I feel more than that. Ever since I saw you that first day I knew you were special. That's why I talked to you because I wanted to get to know you more. But then the incident happened and I was worried sick about you. I knew there was more than a friendly intention towards you after I practically felt my world shift upside down when I saw you that night outside my house all beat up. After that, when we started to know each other more and hang out, those feelings started to grow. I found out you were an amazing girl with a heart of gold that had suffered through something she shouldn't have gone through. I felt the need to protect you from harm and others and that's when I found out," she slowly placed Bella's hand on her chest, "I fell in love with you, Bella. My heart is for you and no one else. But it's okay, I know you don't feel anything for me," she added quickly, "I unders-"

Bella cut her off by capturing her lips with hers, kissing her slowly. She felt Alice freeze for a second before she responded back eagerly. They kissed passionately, showing what they really felt through the kiss until they had to pull away for air a few moments later. Bella leaned her forehead on hers while interlacing their fingers.

"I love you too, Alice. Does that answer your question," she asked breathlessly, looking directly at Alice's wide eyes.

Without saying anything, Alice nodded slowly before capturing her lips again into a more heated kiss. Bella lightly pressed her tongue on Alice's lower lip before she was granted entrance and soon they were battling for dominance.

After a moment, they pulled apart and looked at each other. Alice grabbed Bella's hand and guided her towards the edge of the cliff. She slowly crouched down and sat at the edge, pulling down Bella's hand, indicating for her to sit down next to her. Bella followed and sat down, her hand still in Alice's.

Alice looked at the sunset for a moment before turning to look at Bella.

"I promise Bella, I will never hurt you and will make sure to make you the happiest girl alive. I know this is all too quickly and sudden but I do love you, with my whole heart," she interlaced their fingers, "And I would be extremely happy if you made me the honor of becoming my girlfriend."

Bella looked at Alice intently before giving her a chaste kiss. "It would be my honor, Alice."

Alice gave her big grin then. Bella smiled back at her, happy that the girl she loves loved her back.

Bella gently placed her head on Alice's shoulder and looked at the sunset. She then felt Alice rest her head on top of hers. She smiled at that.

Watching the sunset, she made a promise to herself right there and then. She would delete that one chapter with Edward in it and start a new one. One that contained her and Alice only.

**The End**

**A/N: Thank you so much for reading and please excuse any mistakes, I tried to get them all. Please review and tell me what you thought of it.**


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